The Kansas City Chiefs arrived before 4 p.m. to an overcast sky at UW-River Falls. The busses had unloaded the players and were pulling away from George R. Field South Fork Suites by 4:10 p.m.
At 4:48 p.m. an Astleford Idea lease and rental truck was fully unloaded, and the bags were placed in four rows on the pavement. Desk chairs, boxes labeled “fragile” and cases of Red Bull energy drinks were a few of the first things off the truck. Simoutanously, a Penske truck was loaded with the coach’s luggage as a crew waited for its departure to Grimm Hall, located a couple of hundred yards away from the players’ new digs in the George R. Field South Fork Suites. The new facility was opened several years ago and features suite-style living of four bedrooms surrounding a commons area. Able to accommodate 240 residents, the $11.5 million building was constructed, paid for and owned by UWRF students, who have bonding authority under Wisconsin statutes. Named for a UWRF chancellor who led the university from 1968-1985, South Fork will experience a $14 million expansion to double the size of the building next year.

When asked about the prompt arrival by the Chiefs this year, residence living head custodian Bob Karras responded by saying, “There must not have been any bad weather for the Chiefs travel this year. With no storms they were given the ability to arrive on time.” Last year the team arrived later than scheduled, having to deal with a 45-minute storm delay.
Chiefs’ Security Officer Ken Whiting shared of his trip up to UW-River Falls with the team. He said the demeanors of the players was quite different from last year. “They were mellow and hyped-up,” he said. He attributed the vast difference of behavior to the amount of youth that joins the Chiefs for training camp. Whiting said he could feel the anxiousness from the players on the bus ride and anticipates a competitive camp.

The rookies stood out in the crowd of people gathered outside of South Fork Suites as the players searched for their belongings. They looked a little apprehensive and unsure about how they were to go about getting their personal bags off the truck. But after watching several veteran players collect their bags, the rookies figured out what to do and quickly gathered their things.

The local River Falls bike shop, The Route, had a table set up for rentals by players.Red and white Trek mountain bikes featuring the Chiefs logo on the top handlebar were lined-up and ready for the players. Adam Schmidt, owner of The Route, said “You can buy them and we can ship them back home for you,” to players asking about how long they are allowed to have the bikes. The bikes are available after camp for $250. Isaac Curtis said the rental price for the bikes are $75 which includes a lock for all of camp. He said they brought 40 bikes to the camp for rental and there are more in stock at the shop if they are needed. Tackle Damion McIntosh talked to other players in-line about how he bikes everywhere and tries not to spend any money at training camp. After renting a bike, players were given a green folder containing a sheet with information and discount rates.

There was plenty of horsepower parked in the lot east of South Fork Suites. H3 Hummers, Ford Expeditions, Dodge Chargers, Chevy Tahoes, Range Rovers and Lincoln Navigators were among the vehicles Enterprise of Hudson, Wis. made available for players to choose from. Enterprise anticipated 15 players would rent vehicles for use during camp.

A group of five to seven players were overheard making plans to do some shopping at ShopKo. They looked like they were on a mission as they left quickly. A player yelled from his third-floor window to a player sitting in a black Lincoln MKX on the street below. The player in the window wanted to know who the driver was taking to ShopKo with him, and if they wouldn’t mind waiting for him to come as well. The driver agreed to wait for his teammate.

Players
Two of the Chiefs’ most productive offensive players, wide receiver Dwayne Bowe and running back Larry Johnson, were both absent at the beginning of last year’s training camp; but both reported on time this year, and spent a couple minutes talking with the media.

As Bowe began looking for his bags among the players’ suitcases, a reporter asked Bowe if he was worried about a Herm Edwards training camp, to which Bowe assuredly replied, “Not worried about nothing but my opponent…Show me my opponent.” Bowe also told reporters he was tired, but excited to be at camp. When asked about top draft pick defensive lineman Glenn Dorsey’s absence, Bowe said he told Dorsey to be patient but added that he was happy to be at camp on time this year.

Johnson-after checking out a LCD TV one of the players brought-said he was excited to be at camp this year and added that he felt weird after not attending camp last year. He said he felt like he was “on vacation.” When asked about the drafting of running back Jamaal Charles out of Texas and second-year running back Kolby Smith, Johnson said, “I’m cool with those guys being back there, anything that helps prolong my career is good.” Johnson also said that with the new offense he feels he can get back to his 2005-2006 stats and expressed that the offense will not be as predictable as it was last year. Johnson finished talking with the media by saying that he’s the vet on the team, and it’s going to be fun to be out on the field “sweating it out.”

Cornerback Patrick Surtain, an 11-year veteran of the league, was approached by the media in the parking lot of South Fork Suites and asked about his preparation for camp. Surtain responded by saying, “Being a veteran you know what’s expected, so you prepare the utmost, each and every year. There’s like 50 new guys, and I haven’t seen their face before, and they’re hungry. As a veteran you have to come in and bring the same kind of intensity.”

Defensive End Jason Parker, who is in his first training camp with the Chiefs, was learning the lay of the land. Parker was a fountain of questions for bystanders, on everything from the cost of renting a bike to getting directions to the University Center, where meals are served.

Safety Bernard Pollard answered questions from the media as he stood next to his black BMW M6. Pollard, stocked up groceries from Wal-Mart, commented, “Got to have lots of oatmeal for camp.” With his memory foam inserts and Jordan shoes in hand, Pollard looked to be prepared for the long camp ahead. He said he was exited for camp and more

comfortable with his weight and position going into camp this year than he was last year. “Not many people are expecting much, but I’m expecting a lot,” he said expressing optimism for the team’s success this year.

A group of five to seven players were overheard making plans to do some shopping at ShopKo. They looked like they were on a mission as they left quickly. A player yelled from his third-floor window to a player sitting in a black Lincoln MKX on the street below. The player in the window wanted to know who the driver was taking to ShopKo with him, and if they wouldn’t mind waiting for him to come as well. The driver agreed to wait for his teammate.

A group of five to seven players were overheard making plans to do some shopping at ShopKo. They looked like they were on a mission as they left quickly. A player yelled from his third-floor window to a player sitting in a black Lincoln MKX on the street below. The player in the window wanted to know who the driver was taking to ShopKo with him, and if they wouldn’t mind waiting for him to come as well. The driver agreed to wait for his teammate.

It was a wet start to the 2008 Kansas Chiefs Summer Training Camp. Grey clouds dropped rain that completely saturated the practice fields with water. The rain forced the Chiefs indoors to the Knowles Center for their first practice.The temperature was 72 degrees with a slight southwest wind at 7 miles per hour with an overall humidity of 90 percent.

Head Coach Herm Edwards walked into the lobby of the facility to keep an eye on the weather.While players waited for practice to begin they tossed around a football. Shouts of encouragement among the players were heard all around. Boxes of shoes, towel baskets and storage containers lined the track around the courts the Chiefs had their walkthrough on.

Offense

Running back Larry Johnson took all of the handoffs with the first stringers running behind a new offensive line. First round draft pick Branden Albert was in on every first string snap at left guard. Brian Waters was at let tackle, Adrian Jones was at right tackle and Damion McIntosh was at right guard with the first unit. Third-year center Rudy Niswanger snapped for the first stringers to round out the Chiefs’ first practice offensive line.Second-year wide receiver Dwayne Bowe caught three of quarterback Brodie Croyle’s throws. Croyle completed 15-16 passes, finding veteran tight end Tony Gonzalez seven times.

Wide receiver Dwayne Bowe seemed almost giddy during the first practice as he tossed a football around with other players while taking his turn playing defense when the third string offense was walking through plays. He and tight end Tony Gonzalez also stayed after and played catch with linebacker Donnie Edwards for a couple of minutes. Bowe made a final appearance after the morning session when he walked up to the podium prior to Head Coach Herm Edwards’ press conference. He was laughing as he left the podium as the media heckled him.

Defense

The media was confined to a small area in the southeast corner of Knowles complex. The offense was on the nearest side to the media, making it difficult to track what the defense was up to.

Tamba Hali and Ron Edwards were two of the defensive linemen who saw quality time during the mock-snap drills. Rookie DaJuan Morgan was also seeing some first-string time in the safety position. Throughout the practice, the defense seemed more leisure than the offense, primarily focusing on one drill, using only two strings of players.

Special Teams

The special teams punt unit worked on blocking the punt after a portion of the team was released to the locker rooms at a quarter to eleven. Special Teams Coach Mike Priefer gave the players energetic instruction. “If we can’t get our depth, we can’t block anybody,” he exclaimed. Punter Dustin Colquitt took multiple snaps from long snapper Jean-Philippe Darche as players worked on blocking technique on the left and right sides. “Protect the block spot, “said Priefer, “Nice job men, you’re getting the concept.”

Extra, Extra...

UW-River Falls Falcon Foods employee Fritz Jumpp hadn’t seen anybody at the concession stand at Ramer Field due to the weather. Pam Cochran of Rolla, Mo. and her family made the 12-hour journey for today’s practice. “We just got up here and they said it was cancelled,” she said with disappointment.